Various systems, such as pick-to-order systems, may be used to fulfill complex orders in inventory storage, warehouse, shipping, or other environments. In such systems, totes, pods, or other containers may include items required to fulfill one or more orders in an order queue. Such items may be removed from the respective containers and disposed on one or more shuttles configured to transport the items to a desired location where the order can be further processed. In particular, such shuttles may transport the items to an empty tote associated with the order, and a conveyor on the shuttle may transfer the items from the shuttle to the empty tote, thereby at least partially filling the tote.
Although such systems may be useful in transporting inventory items during an order fulfilment process, existing systems are typically not configured to maximize the number of items transferred from the conveyor of the shuttle to an empty tote. Indeed, when transferring inventory items to an empty tote, such system are prone to unevenly distributing the inventory items within an inner space of the tote. As a result, such systems often underfill totes, thereby slowing the order fulfilment process and reducing efficiency. Further, unevenly distributing inventory items within the tote can, in some circumstances, result in damage to the inventory item and a temporary stoppage in the order fulfilment process.